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Confidence in God’s Protection.

To the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

61 Hear my cry, O God;
Listen to my prayer.

From the end of the earth I call to You, when my heart is overwhelmed and weak;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I [a rock that is too high to reach without Your help].

For You have been a shelter and a refuge for me,
A strong tower against the enemy.

Let me dwell in Your tent forever;
Let me take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. Selah.


For You have heard my vows, O God;
You have given me the inheritance of those who fear Your name [with reverence].

You will prolong the king’s life [adding days upon days];
His years will be like many generations.

He will sit enthroned forever before [the face of] God;
Appoint lovingkindness and truth to watch over and preserve him.

So I will sing praise to Your name forever,
Paying my vows day by day.

God Alone a Refuge from Treachery and Oppression.

To the Chief Musician; to Jeduthun [Ethan, the noted musician, founder of an official musical family]. A Psalm of David.

62 For God alone my soul waits in silence;
From Him comes my salvation.

He alone is my rock and my salvation,
My defense and my strong tower; I will not be shaken or disheartened.


How long will you attack a man
So that you may murder him, all of you,
Like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence?

They consult only to throw him down from his high position [to dishonor him];
They delight in lies.
They bless with [the words of] their mouths,
But inwardly they curse. Selah.


For God alone my soul waits in silence and quietly submits to Him,
For my hope is from Him.

He only is my rock and my salvation;
My fortress and my defense, I will not be shaken or discouraged.

On God my salvation and my glory rest;
He is my rock of [unyielding] strength, my refuge is in God.

Trust [confidently] in Him at all times, O people;
Pour out your heart before Him.
God is a refuge for us. Selah.


Men of low degree are only a breath (emptiness), and men of [high] rank are a lie (delusion).
In the balances they go up [because they have no measurable weight or value];
They are together lighter than a breath.
10 
Do not trust in oppression,
And do not vainly hope in robbery;
If riches increase, do not set your heart on them.

11 
God has spoken once,
Twice I have heard this:
That power belongs to God.
12 
Also to You, O Lord, belong lovingkindness and compassion,
For You compensate every man according to [the value of] his work.(A)

Prayer for Protection from Secret Enemies.

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

64 Hear my voice, O God, in my [a]complaint;
Guard my life from the terror of the enemy.

Hide me from the secret counsel and conspiracy of the ungodly,
From the scheming of those who do wrong,

Who have sharpened their tongues like a sword.
They aim venomous words as arrows,

To shoot from ambush at the blameless [one];
Suddenly they shoot at him, without fear.

They encourage themselves in [their pursuit of] an evil agenda;
They talk of laying snares secretly;
They say, “Who will discover us?”

They devise acts of injustice, saying,
“We are ready with a well-conceived plan.”
For the inward thought and the heart of a man are deep (mysterious, unsearchable).


But God will shoot them with an [unexpected] arrow;
Suddenly they will be wounded.

So they will be caused to stumble;
Their own tongue is against them;
All who gaze at them will shake the head [in scorn].

Then all men will fear [God’s judgment];
They will declare the work of God,
And they will consider and wisely acknowledge what He has done.
10 
The righteous will rejoice in the Lord and take refuge in Him;
All the upright in heart will glory and offer praise.

God’s Abundant Favor to Earth and Man.

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song.

65 To You belongs silence [the submissive wonder of reverence], and [it bursts into] praise in Zion, O God;
And to You the vow shall be performed.

O You who hear prayer,
To You all mankind comes.

Wickedness and guilt prevail against me;
Yet as for our transgressions,
You forgive them [removing them from Your sight].

Blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near
To dwell in Your courts.
We will be filled with the goodness of Your house,
Your holy temple.


By awesome and wondrous things You answer us in righteousness, O God of our salvation,
You who are the trust and hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest sea;

Who creates the mountains by His strength,
Being clothed with power,

Who stills the roaring of the seas,
The roaring of their waves,
And the tumult of the peoples,

So they who dwell at the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs [the evidence of Your presence].(A)
You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.


You visit the earth and make it overflow [with water];
You greatly enrich it;
The stream of God is full of water;
You provide their grain, when You have prepared the earth.
10 
You water its furrows abundantly,
You smooth its ridges;
You soften it with showers,
You bless its growth.
11 
You crown the year with Your bounty,
And Your paths overflow.
12 
The pastures of the wilderness drip [with dew],
And the hills are encircled with joy.
13 
The meadows are clothed with flocks
And the valleys are covered with grain;
They shout for joy and they sing.

Praise for God’s Mighty Deeds and for His Answer to Prayer.

To the Chief Musician. A Song. A Psalm.

66 Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;

Sing of the honor and glory and magnificence of His name;
Make His praise glorious.

Say to God, “How awesome and fearfully glorious are Your works!
Because of the greatness of Your power Your enemies will pretend to be obedient to You.

“All the earth will [bow down to] worship You [in submissive wonder],
And will sing praises to You;
They will praise Your name in song.” Selah.


Come and see the works of God,
He is awesome in His deeds toward the children of men.

He turned the sea into dry land;
They crossed through the river on foot;
There we rejoiced in Him.(B)

Who rules by His might forever,
His eyes keep watch on the nations;
Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah.


Bless our God, O peoples,
And make the sound of His praise be heard abroad,

Who keeps us among the living,
And does not allow our feet to slip or stumble.
10 
For You have tested us, O God;
You have refined us as silver is refined.
11 
You brought us into the net;
You laid a heavy burden [of servitude] on [b]us.
12 
You made men (charioteers) [c]ride over our heads [in defeat];
We went through fire and through water,
Yet You brought us out into a [broad] place of abundance [to be refreshed].
13 
I shall come into Your house with burnt offerings;
I shall pay You my vows,
14 
Which my lips uttered
And my mouth spoke as a promise when I was in distress.
15 
I shall offer to You burnt offerings of fat lambs,
With the [sweet] smoke of rams;
I will offer bulls with male goats. Selah.

16 
Come and hear, all who fear God [and worship Him with awe-inspired reverence and obedience],
And I will tell what He has done for me.
17 
I cried aloud to Him;
He was highly praised with my tongue.
18 
If I regard sin and baseness in my heart [that is, if I know it is there and do nothing about it],
The Lord will not hear [me];(C)
19 
But certainly God has heard [me];
He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.
20 
Blessed be God,
Who has not turned away my prayer
Nor His lovingkindness from me.

The Nations Exhorted to Praise God.

To the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song.

67 God be gracious and kind-hearted to us and bless us,
And make His face shine [with favor] on us— Selah.

That Your way may be known on earth,
Your salvation and deliverance among all nations.

Let the [d]peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
For You will judge the people fairly
And guide the nations on earth. Selah.

Let the peoples praise You, O God;
Let all the peoples praise You.

The earth has yielded its harvest [as evidence of His approval];
God, our God, blesses us.

God blesses us,
And all the ends of the earth shall fear Him [with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder].

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 64:1 Or concern.
  2. Psalm 66:11 Lit upon our loins.
  3. Psalm 66:12 The ancient rabbis understood this as times of captivity for Israel.
  4. Psalm 67:3 I.e. includes pagan Gentiles.

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